Albert's Schloss operator receives £10m to fund expansion

The operator behind Albert's Schloss and Rudy's Neapolitan Pizza in Manchester has received £10m towards expanding its brands across the UK.

The Business Growth Fund (BGF) has invested £10m in Mission Mars, led by Roy Ellis and Neil Macleod, who founded the Revolution bar chain. The company plans to roll out Albert's Schloss in other major cities, and Rudy's Neapolitan pizzerias across the UK with an initial focus on the north of England.

Mission Mars was launched in 2015 after merging with Trof Group, which was launched by Joel Wilkinson and Adelaide Winter (pictured left) and had a Manchester portfolio including bars Trof, Gorilla and the Deaf Institute. The group now has combined annual sales of nearly £30m across its 10 sites, which also includes the Viking, the Elephant and Liberty Tavern in Liverpool.

The business has appointed Matt Davies, former Tesco and Pets at Home chief executive, as non-executive chair to support the roll-out of the concepts.

Ellis said: "Our mission is to create world-class food, drink, entertainment and hospitality experiences through innovation, people and sustainability. The business has grown quickly to date and our venues are increasing in popularity and reputation across the North West."

The deal was led for BGF by Neil Inskip and Paul Dolyniuk in BGF's Manchester office.

Inskip added: "Mission Mars has an impressive management team with a proven track record of scaling hospitality brands. The concepts within the Mission Mars group are innovative, well-delivered and outperforming the market. The team has established a strong foundation to continue this roll-out across the UK and we look forward to supporting the next stage of growth."

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